T HE country`s reserves, according to latest statistics, have f allen to $20.1bn from the peak $24.5bn in October last -a decline of $4.4bn. The reserves are declining by an average of $550m each month.
Continued poor performance of the export sector, an uncontrolled rise in imports, the downward trend in remittances, the increase in debt-servicing and a rise in profit repatriation have contributed to the f all. At this rate, the reserves are expected to decline to $13-14bn by next June while the free reserves of the State Bank of Pakistan willbe around $8-9 billion. A return to the IMF thus looks certain in 2018.
The government seems to have run out of ideas to reverse the adverse trend.
Apparently, the ministry of finance has given up on the plan to rescue the bleeding external sector.
